Sherlock Holmes... sort of

Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Hansom Cab Killer was performed at the Gladstone by the Black Sheep theatre company.  It was part of our subscription series.   The most clever idea was to have Mrs. Hudson, the housekeeper, be the brains behind Holmes.

It was a bit like a Company of Fools performance, with lots of costume changes, commedia dell'arte shtick and twisting of the original plot lines.  But it was not as polished as the Fools, and the action lagged from time to time. There was intriguing use of shadow puppets and shadow performances by the various characters. There were only 3 actors  and they played at least 15 characters. The quick changes, untied costumes and slapped-on wigs were part of the general folly.  It was somewhat amusing but not as good as we would have liked. If not for the sexy bits and rough language, it would have been suitable for schoolchildren. More like high school age-appropriate, but still a bit raunchy.